Thursday, May 31, 2018

Model T production started on October 1st, 1908. As they became popular, they were produced in the U.S., Canada, and England, and were later shipped to and assembled in countries including Germany, France, Spain, Norway, and Denmark. by 1920, every second car was a Model TThe Model T Ford defined the manufacturing dominance of 20th Century America, and by the end of its production run, over 15 million cars had rolled off the various assembly lines. making it the 8th most sold automobile in history.The last Model T Ford completed its journey off the assembly line on May 31, 1927.

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

The Cyclemotor Corporation was formed in 1916 in Rochester NY. The company manufactured a 120cc two stroke engine mounted to a bicycle-type frame under the Evans name. The 1 1/2 hp engine could power the 75 lb. bike to 40 mph. Unfortunately the company was out of business by 1922

The yacht America shown still looking sleek and fast about twenty years after her famous trip to England when she brought the America's cup to America.She had an eventful life, a race boat in England for a time, fought on both sides during the civil war and was being used as a training vessel when this picture was taken. Is that the Constitution in the background? Below, under sail in 1901, just before she was put under cover for twenty years.

Monday, May 28, 2018

Another guest post from Mic;When I was gearing up for my first hunting season (whitetail
deer) my dad told me he had an old meat saw for cutting the carcass in half if
I should be fortunate enough to get one on my first time out. Dad wasn’t a
hunter, so I have no idea how he came to possess a meat saw. Lady luck did
favour me that year (a handsome buck just over 205 lb on a sunny Thursday
morning), but when I examined the century old meat saw with its wooden handle
and steel (now somewhat corroded) construction, I decided to opt for a more
modern stainless steel meat saw instead. The old saw was certainly well built
though, and a closer examination of it showed that it had been forged in Toronto, Ontario by E Westman. A stamp of what appears to be a horse shoe
with either A1 or AI appears on the frame of the saw. This frame holds a 24 inch blade. The date of manufacture
is not listed.

Elijah Westman was born in 1837 in Ireland (CountyLaois).
He came to Canada
with his family, including brothers Samuel, William, Joseph and James. He ran a
19th century manufacturing shop (butcher saws and tools) at 177 King St. East, Toronto.

In 1885, E. Westman was recorded
to have 6 employees. Eventually the business ended up moving to 65
James St., Toronto
(listed address from a Toronto
business directory in 1900). Besides running his business, Elijah served as a
school trustee for the city. He died on Nov. 1, 1906 in Toronto. His spouse, Margaret Plunkett
Westman, died shortly after on Dec. 30, 1906. They had 6 children (Samuel,
Clara, Henry, Elijah, Charles, Albert) during their marriage although Albert
died at the age of 12 in 1892. There is no record to be readily found
indicating what happened to the business after Elijah passed away. If you know
more than what I have found, please post a comment. Thanks, Mic

Sunday, May 27, 2018

In the first decade of the 20th Century, Herbert Dennell built motorcycles utilizing inline threes and fours, sourced from JAP. For his frame construction, it appears he did not like to bend steel tubes.

Saturday, May 26, 2018

Having found a picture of the St Clair Tunnel steam locomotive, I started wondering about the replacement 3 axle electric locomotives introduced in 1907. Predictably, it's well covered by many already, this is electric engine No. 1307, at Sarnia, Ontario, year unknown.

I found an article on this little homebuilt three wheeler in the December 1986 issue of The Classic Motor Cycle, it had apparently also appeared in the December 11 1947 issue of Motor Cycling when it was already 27 years old.

The builder, a Mr. J.A Mills of Mansfield, England, built it immediately after WW1 when new vehicles were difficult to buy. The frame is steel tube, brazed together, the body is plywood built in three parts, lower "hull" with hood and upper tail added and bolted to the frame. The motorcycle based powertrain features a side valve AJS V twin which by 1947 had travelled an estimated 10,000 miles. A quick Google shows it's still around as of 2013, nearing 100 years of age.

Friday, May 25, 2018

Four of these 0-10-0 camelback locomotives, reportedly the largest of their time, were put in service in the St Clair tunnel soon after it opened in 1890. Six trains an hour, consisting of about 30 cars each, moved through the 6000 foot tunnel at three mph. A number of asphyxiations led to the replacement of steam with electric locomotives in 1908, an early use of Westinghouse's AC current system.

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

The Auto Glider was part of the post WW1 scooter boom in England. Their initial offering in 1919 was a stand-up model (Model A) and despite their assurances that standing was a better way, they soon offered the sit down Model D Deluxe shown below. In both variations, no starter was provided, the rider paddled the vehicle along manipulating a decompressor lever in order to start it.

Aside from the awkward engine and drive arrangement on the front wheel, the Model D styling was a big improvement. Despite that, the company was out of business by 1921.

Sunday, May 20, 2018

Another disappeared Toronto company with little information online, the above ad is from 1909, indicating that they make marine engines, the ad below from 5 years later from a 1914 Popular Mechanics lists the company as an agent for Scripps marine engines. I've never heard of a Schofield Holden engine, I wonder if any exist.

In other news, the only other thing I could find was a record of a court case of the company vs the City of Toronto in 1913. This was about the time of the Ashbridges Bay redevelopment and was about water access for their boatbuilding business and the poor water quality near the new sewage treatment plant.

Saturday, May 19, 2018

I absolutely loved this car when it came out, hard to believe that was 26 years ago. Looking at it now it does seem to be a bit blobby and shapeless and the similarities to the Miata are more apparent to me. The fact that Mazda is using a car of that age on their stand at the 2018 Toronto Auto Show might say something about the state of the auto industry today. Right next to it was their Cosmo, produced from 1967-72, still a good looking car. Only 1176 were produced.

Guest post from Mic;When walking across a farm at night, back in the 1980s, a flashlight was a fair choice to light your way. But a kerosene lantern was really the way to go as you could manage it with a known quantity of fuel, and a known length of wick. The mysteries of your flashlights battery and bulb life were a potential hindrance in comparison. In colder weather, it even provided a measure of warmth that a bulb could not match. I don’t know whatever became of the first flashlight I owned, but I still have the blue kerosene lantern my father gave me once I was old enough to be walking in the dark (and responsible enough to manage a combustible fuel device). After my father passed away, I inherited his kerosene lantern. I didn’t give it much thought until recently when I began to consider whether to give my blue lantern to my eldest daughter, and blow the dust off of dad’s oldie for myself. It turns out that dad’s lantern was far more interesting than mine!

Built by Hiram L. Piper Co. Ltd. in MontrealCanada, dad’s kerosene lantern actually started its life as a Canadian National Railways lantern (model 400). The base is stamped 2-58 so the production date would be during the second quarter of 1958. Only the metal components are Hiram L Piper made as the glass globe is stamped as being made in the USA. You can find quite a few varieties of these lanterns, other railroad and marine lighting implements, and various other non-ferrous metal based odds and ends produced by the company on Kijiji and eBay.

Hiram L. Piper Co. Ltd. was a Canadian company that traces its roots all the way back to the 1840s. The tinsmith Mr. Hiram Piper produced weights and measures with recorded sales from 1842 (Toronto). In 1857, business operations were located at 83 Yonge St., Toronto, and the building has been restored with this history in mind.

His brother Noah, who had joined the business at some point along the way (it operated as Hiram Piper & Brother for a number of years) continued the family business after Hiram’s death (1866) and eventually changed the business name to Noah Piper and Sons. Of note is that Noah and Hiram had already been successful in producing marine and railway signal lamps by the mid 1850s. While Hiram had not produced sons in his family, Noah had three sons (Henry, Edward and Hiram). In 1902, the company was operating as Hiram L. Piper (presumably Noah has retired or passed away at this point and his son Hiram has taken over) and began large scale production of railroad lanterns. This expansion coincides with a move to production in Montreal, Quebec. In 1909 the operation was located at 17 to 23 Rue Normand, and produced a variety of lanterns (including automotive) as well as other metal working services. In the 1920s operations appear to have moved to 75 Rue St. Remi.

The railroad lanterns produced were of the kerosene fuel variety originally, but in later years battery powered lamps were produced as well. A paper instruction pamphlet found to accompany some of the kerosene lanterns, however, identifies that Hiram L. Piper Co. Ltd. operates from Kingston, Ontario (operating address unknown, date of operations unknown). This may reflect a later move of operational headquarters. Most lanterns are stamped with an identifier “Adlake” which refers to the fact that the production is actually under license from a U.S. company called Adams and Westlake.

Other goods produced by the company over the span of its operations appear to be non-ferrous metal based, and include railroad locomotive components (chimneys, burners, reflectors, etc), egg scales (produced at 555 rue St. Remi, Montreal), fish hatchery equipment, cans, paint trays, etc. In 1929, Canadian Railway and Marine World (vol. 32) reports that Hiram L. Piper, company president, died with his wife in a fire. During World War II, Hiram L. Piper Co. Ltd. is listed as having been a manufacturer of component parts for naval binnacles to be used on Allied ships. Information about company activities becomes scarce after the 1950s. The company is reported to be dissolved in 2013, with three of the four members of the board of directors being of the surname Piper and residing in Kingston, Ontario. The last listed address for the business, however, is in North Bay, Ontario (8 Ferris Drive). Please post additional information or corrections if you have access to more than what I was able to find. Thanks.

More weigh scale information here at the http://www.niagarahistorical.museum/